He sounds so sure that everything will be fine that I start to breathe easier. Then another disturbing thought crosses my mind.
“But what if the lawyer you get is not good enough?”
What if he gets a crappy, overworked lawyer who doesn’t have a good enough incentive to fight for his innocence? Sometimes it doesn’t matter whether a person is innocent or guilty. An expensive lawyer can make all the difference. They have skin in the game.
“Stop worrying,” he says. “I won’t need a lawyer. All this will go away before the day is over. I need to go, baby. Please take care of yourself and the baby. I love you so much.”
“I want to see you. Are you allowed to have visitors?”
The call disconnects. I wait for him to call back, but he doesn’t.
I’m driving through the square now. Nothing feels the same. I feel even worse than a stranger in town.
What if Alex is wrong, and they don’t let him go today? What if they keep him behind bars? If they really suspect him of being a murderer, they could keep him locked up for months before a trial.
If that happens, I don’t know whether I can stay in this town. I’m not sure I’m strong enough to handle the same kind of rejection that my mother experienced years ago after my father went to prison for the murder of Lacey Simmons.
Chapter 3
Officer Tony Scofield has a shiny forehead and laugh lines fanning the corners of his eyes.
But he’s certainly not laughing now. Sitting on a chair opposite me, he’s trying to keep his expression neutral, trying not to show his emotions. But I see through him. Like everyone else in town, he believes my husband is a murderer. He probably also thinks I know all about it. After all, what kind of woman is together with a man for so many years and doesn’t suspect he’s capable of murder?
The officer clears his throat and leans forward, his forearms resting on his knees. His eyes pin me down. “This must be a tough time for you, Mrs. Watson. But I need you to speak to me. An innocent girl was murdered. We need to find out what really happened.”
I don’t trust myself to speak. I’ve watched enough movies, heard enough horrors to know that cops have a way of twisting information to make an innocent person appear guilty. I don’t want to say something that could end up nailing Alex to the cross the locals have already erected for him.
“Officer, all I can tell you is that I think… I mean, my husband did not do this. I already told you that.”
“You think?” He lets the words hang between us. One corner of his mouth tips upward and his eyes glow with victory.He’s trying to make me uncomfortable, but he won’t get what he wants.
I sit up straight and look him in the eye. “I know he didn’t do it.” My lower lip trembles. “My husband is a good man.”
“Good men do bad things all the time.” The hard tone in his voice sends a chill down my spine.
I lean back on the couch, trying to distance myself from him as much as possible. But there’s nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. I cannot run from this nightmare.
“He didn’t do it,” I repeat more firmly, shaking my head as tears pool in my eyes, spill over my lower lids, and slide down my cheeks.
It’s been twenty-four hours since I spoke to Alex. He lied. He told me he’d be back by last night, but he’s still not home.
I lay a hand on my belly and suck in a breath, waiting for the officer to break the silence. Stroking my stomach, I remind myself that I’m not alone.
“Do you know the sex yet?” he asks.
I frown, not understanding what he means since my mind is all over the place.
“I mean, do you know whether it’s a girl or a boy?”
“I don’t know. We want it to be a surprise.”
“What are you wishing for?” He leans forward as though what I’m about to say would be enough information for him to convict my husband.
I shrug. “I don’t mind.”
“What if it’s a girl?” His smile returns, but I don’t allow myself to be fooled. He’s putting up a cover, trying to get me to trust him so I can open up and give him information I don’t even have.
“As I said, Officer, I don’t mind. A girl or a boy. It doesn’t matter.”
